I bike therefore, I am!

It Finally Happened

I have been biking for almost nearly a year. My sister gave me hear bike a year ago. July, 2016. I have been biking ever since except for a few months in the winter when it was too cold or too snowy or icy to bike.

One of my biggest fears about biking is having an accident.

A friend recently told me there are two types of bikers. Those who have fallen off their bikes. And those who have not fallen off their bikes…yet. Well, now I am firmly in the former category.

Last week, I took a small tumble on my bike. I have to admit, it freaked me out a little bit. I took about a week off of biking to recover. It was easy to do as it rained for a few days and was pretty cold outside. And I worked a bit of overtime. Still, I was nervous about getting back out on the trial.

This is what happened…

I took a route I did not normally take. I tried a different part of the trail. I went under Four Mile Run Road instead of crossing and turning onto the W&OD trail. I had never been down that end of the Four Mile Run Trail and I thought I would explore a bit.

Under the road, there was a sizable crevice for water drainage into the creek which was to my right. Across the crevice was a slab of concrete which one could walk or, ostensibly, ride across safely without getting wet. I felt a little nervous about riding across it, but I proceeded anyway.

I moved across slowly and started feeling wobbly, so I put my right foot down to balance myself. Problem. I was too far over to the right and did not have enough slab on that side. So, when I put my foot down, I went all the way down over into the crevice onto my side, the bike on top of me.

I hurt my knee a little, scraped my forearm and elbow, and hurt my shoulder a little. Fortunately, I was wearing my knee brace, which saved my leg from any abrasions or cuts. And I only had minor scrapes on my arm. Nothing was seriously hurt except for maybe my ego.

There was a man and his young son on the other side of the creek who saw me fall. He yelled across and asked if I was OK. I said I was. There was a picnic table nearby and I got up and walked my bike over to the table. I drank some water and poured water over my injuries and tried to assess the extent of the damage. He and his son walked over to make sure I was OK.

He examined my knee, which had turned a little purple, and suggested I immediately return home and put ice on it and maybe seek medical attention. After talking with me for a few minutes, I guess he figured I was OK, and he went on his way. I did notice he and his son kind of hovered nearby though and they cheered when I got on my bike and rode away.

I have to admit, getting back on the bike after my tumble was a little harder than I thought it would be. As soon as I tried to pedal, I had an overwhelming sense of trepidation. I was on a slight downward slope, and all I could think about was falling again. I walked the bike down to a flatter surface and started there instead. Still, I felt it imperative that I actually get on the bike and ride. So, I did. And I’m glad I did.

I did take his advice and rode back to Shirlington and stopped at a coffee shop. I got some ice and removed my knee brace. My knee actually was not purple. Thank goodness. I iced it for a while before walking up the hill to my apartment. A week later, I’m fine and everything seems to have healed up nicely.

I’m back to biking. I went out yesterday. And I am heading out today after I post this entry. My minor accident has left me a bit skittish, but still undeterred.

I am participating in two upcoming biking events. One is bike to work day on May 19. And the other is a biking challenge in the month of June. I will be posting details on both later this week.